My top 3 World Heritage sites are 1) Dubrovnik, Croatia (bias perhaps as my Mum is from there, but nothing can take the memories of my running around a huge ‘castle’ in wonderment as a kid every summer) and the sea which surrounds it is to die for. 2) Avignon, France - stunning place to visit and the home of Chateau Neuf du Pape - bonnet de duche. 3) Lucca, Italy - another stunning town in Tuscany and home of a summer festival which World famous musicians flock too. Who wouldn’t in those stunning historic surroundings.
I haven’t been to Liverpool for 8/9 years, but they must have seriously messed up the area for Unesco to exclude them, as they tend to stick with the places on the list and help with improvements etc.
My top 3 World Heritage sites are 1) Dubrovnik, Croatia (bias perhaps as my Mum is from there, but nothing can take the memories of my running around a huge ‘castle’ in wonderment as a kid every summer) and the sea which surrounds it is to die for. 2) Avignon, France - stunning place to visit and the home of Chateau Neuf du Pape - bonnet de duche. 3) Lucca, Italy - another stunning town in Tuscany and home of a summer festival which World famous musicians flock too. Who wouldn’t in those stunning historic surroundings.
I believe the singer Suzanne Vega was a big admirer
Deleted because of the new waterfront development and new Everton stadium, causing a significant loss to the authenticity and integrity of the entire waterfront.
I’m not sure it matters that much to be honest, there’s over 1,000 sites on the list and there will be some you’ve probably been to that you wouldn’t even realise where on there.
My top 3 World Heritage sites are 1) Dubrovnik, Croatia (bias perhaps as my Mum is from there, but nothing can take the memories of my running around a huge ‘castle’ in wonderment as a kid every summer) and the sea which surrounds it is to die for. 2) Avignon, France - stunning place to visit and the home of Chateau Neuf du Pape - bonnet de duche. 3) Lucca, Italy - another stunning town in Tuscany and home of a summer festival which World famous musicians flock too. Who wouldn’t in those stunning historic surroundings.
Sorry to sound pedantic, but the 'home' of Châteauneuf-du-Pape wine is Châteauneuf-du-Pape!
My top 3 World Heritage sites are 1) Dubrovnik, Croatia (bias perhaps as my Mum is from there, but nothing can take the memories of my running around a huge ‘castle’ in wonderment as a kid every summer) and the sea which surrounds it is to die for. 2) Avignon, France - stunning place to visit and the home of Chateau Neuf du Pape - bonnet de duche. 3) Lucca, Italy - another stunning town in Tuscany and home of a summer festival which World famous musicians flock too. Who wouldn’t in those stunning historic surroundings.
Sorry to sound pedantic, but the 'home' of Châteauneuf-du-Pape wine is Châteauneuf-du-Pape!
Quite right, apologies, I bought a lot of it from Avignon when there, but the link was that the village named it after the Pope when he moved to Avignon from Rome (I think…)
Lucca is lovely but compared with Florence and Sienna it really doesn't even come close in Tuscany
Unfair to compare, they may all be Tuscan, but are all very different. That said I would take Lucca over Florence in the summer on the basis that you don't get so many tourists. Florence, like many European cities now, is a zoo in the summer.
Favorite UNESCO world heritage site: The town of St Georges, Bermuda. Oldest continuously occupied "English" town in the New World and my home. St Georges has had issues recently regarding hotel development and potential impact on heritage status. In this respect I have sympathy with Liverpool. Life has to go on and towns need to develop. UNESCO have to be realistic.
200m high granite rock, surrounded by the jungle, incredible views from the top and amazing to think they managed to build a fortified Palace of splendor right at the top back in the 5th Century.
The hydraulic system for the canals, lakes, dams, bridges, fountains and underground water pumps still provides water to the site’s gardens
Evidence the caves were inhabited over 5000 years ago, really is a great site.
I'll add I thought some of the stuff I read from Liverpool yesterday was bizarre. They seem to have lost the UNESCO label by developing the waterfront out of all recognition, and then complain that it¡s not fair to deprive them of the chance to develop it. Sorry? I got the impression it was the old buildings that gave Liverpool docks it's UNESCO heritage, so adding a bunch of modern buildings plus a new football stadium was hardly designed to make that happen. Please can we knock the old stuff down and still be a UNESCO site is a fairly unweildy demand. When Spain build a coupe of high-rise blocks in the grounds of the Alhambra, or the Galapagos Islands get a series of 18 hole golf courses and a huge airport, please feel free to complain.
200m high granite rock, surrounded by the jungle, incredible views from the top and amazing to think they managed to build a fortified Palace of splendor right at the top back in the 5th Century.
The hydraulic system for the canals, lakes, dams, bridges, fountains and underground water pumps still provides water to the site’s gardens
Evidence the caves were inhabited over 5000 years ago, really is a great site.
One hell of a climb up there, especially if you're a mad dog who does it in the mid day sun.
I'll add I thought some of the stuff I read from Liverpool yesterday was bizarre. They seem to have lost the UNESCO label by developing the waterfront out of all recognition, and then complain that it¡s not fair to deprive them of the chance to develop it. Sorry? I got the impression it was the old buildings that gave Liverpool docks it's UNESCO heritage, so adding a bunch of modern buildings plus a new football stadium was hardly designed to make that happen. Please can we knock the old stuff down and still be a UNESCO site is a fairly unweildy demand. When Spain build a coupe of high-rise blocks in the grounds of the Alhambra, or the Galapagos Islands get a series of 18 hole golf courses and a huge airport, please feel free to complain.
Reading various accounts of this story, it doesn't sound like anything was knocked down. The land was, according to local authority, largely unused/derelict. If true the Galapagos/Alhambra analogy is unfair. It would be negligent of the local authority not to take advantage of undeveloped prime water front real estate. Copenhagen, albeit not a WHS, is an example of a city where modern cutting edge architecture on former docks blends beautifully with the older buildings to enhance the area. I do think UNESCO have to be realistic and realise you can't just mothball a big chunk of the city and not expect future development. Especially if that area includes derelict land. Maybe there should have been dialogue, however I know from folk that have dealt with UNESCO on the matter of WHS that they are notoriously bad at responding to questions regarding what is deemed to be acceptable development within a WHS. So who knows the full story? Maybe city council balanced up costs/benefits of losing WHS status in favour of the modern development and are now covering their tracks and shifting blame to UNESCO. Not sure how UNESCO works, but is it possible decision is political?
Comments
Favorite UNESCO world heritage site: The town of St Georges, Bermuda. Oldest continuously occupied "English" town in the New World and my home. St Georges has had issues recently regarding hotel development and potential impact on heritage status. In this respect I have sympathy with Liverpool. Life has to go on and towns need to develop. UNESCO have to be realistic.
200m high granite rock, surrounded by the jungle, incredible views from the top and amazing to think they managed to build a fortified Palace of splendor right at the top back in the 5th Century.
The hydraulic system for the canals, lakes, dams, bridges, fountains and underground water pumps still provides water to the site’s gardens
Evidence the caves were inhabited over 5000 years ago, really is a great site.
I'll add I thought some of the stuff I read from Liverpool yesterday was bizarre. They seem to have lost the UNESCO label by developing the waterfront out of all recognition, and then complain that it¡s not fair to deprive them of the chance to develop it. Sorry? I got the impression it was the old buildings that gave Liverpool docks it's UNESCO heritage, so adding a bunch of modern buildings plus a new football stadium was hardly designed to make that happen. Please can we knock the old stuff down and still be a UNESCO site is a fairly unweildy demand. When Spain build a coupe of high-rise blocks in the grounds of the Alhambra, or the Galapagos Islands get a series of 18 hole golf courses and a huge airport, please feel free to complain.
Mind you the red bananas are fabulous.